The leading theory about the Moon's formation suggests that it was created when a Mars-sized object collided with Earth approximately 4.5 billion years ago, leading to the formation of the Moon from debris ejected into space.
The Moon is tidally locked to Earth, meaning it takes the same amount of time to complete one rotation on its axis as it does to orbit Earth. As a result, we only ever see one side of the Moon from Earth's perspective.
The Moon experiences moonquakes, which are seismic activities similar to earthquakes but caused by the gravitational interactions between Earth and the Moon. These moonquakes can last for several minutes and have been detected by seismometers placed during Apollo missions.
The Moon's surface is covered in a layer of fine dust and rocky debris called regolith, which was formed by meteorite impacts and space weathering over billions of years.
The Moon plays a crucial role in creating Earth's tides through its gravitational pull. The gravitational forces exerted by the Moon cause bulges in Earth's oceans, resulting in the rhythmic rise and fall of tides around the world.